Director General of the Ministry of Health in Gaza Dr Muneer Alboursh has warned of the magnitude of the health and humanitarian catastrophe facing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip due to the ongoing Israeli aggression, as hospital bed occupancy has reached an unprecedented 300%.

In his remarks to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Dr Alboursh emphasised that the Gaza Strip's hospitals are overcrowded with wounded patients due to the ongoing, round-the-clock Israeli bombardment.

He noted that the lives of about 200 patients at the Al Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza City are threatened by a shortage of medicine and malnutrition.

He stressed that the medical and food aid entering the Gaza Strip does not cover even 5% of the actual needs, and that it is not of the life-saving type. He noted that the occupation has created a new state of health genocide in Gaza.

He said that more than 500 infants are receiving treatment in hospitals due to hunger and malnutrition, with more than 28,000 cases of severe malnutrition recorded in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the year, due to the ongoing siege.

He emphasised that malnutrition has also affected medical staff, who are experiencing extreme exhaustion and malnutrition, just like other segments of Gazan society.

Dr Alboursh also noted the successive deaths of about 300,000 chronically ill patients due to malnutrition and widespread famine.

He pointed out that 13,000 children fell into the category of acute malnutrition last July, while around 40% of pregnant and breastfeeding women suffer from acute malnutrition.

He highlighted that children and women are the groups most affected by malnutrition, as malnutrition in children leaves serious future consequences, particularly stunting, poor physical growth and immunity, and delayed neurodevelopment that affects cognition and knowledge. It also causes a hidden effect of "genetic reprogramming," which may lead to the inheritance of disease-causing genes to future generations.

Meanwhile, malnutrition in the elderly leads to muscle and immune weakness, delayed recovery, and what is known as "micronutrient starvation," which affects osteoporosis and dementia. Malnutrition in women also causes energy and vitamin deficiency, anemia, and hair loss.

Dr Alboursh stressed that the rapid collapse in food security in the Strip portends a greater tragedy unless the siege is broken immediately and the crossings are opened to allow the entry of food and medical aid without restrictions.

He indicated that hunger does not wait, and malnutrition, if accompanied by disease, creates a deadly cycle from which the weak and the poor do not escape, and they are the majority today due to the Israeli aggression and siege.